“This is America,” he said. “The federal government should not be forcing this upon people. They just shouldn’t.”

CNN has reached out to Bevin for comment.

Chickenpox is a very contagious disease that causes a blister-like rash, itching, tiredness and fever, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It can spread by touching or breathing in virus particles. It can be especially serious for babies, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems.

Bevin’s remarks come several days after a teen in Kentucky sued his local health department, which had temporarily barred students who aren’t immunized against chickenpox from attending school after an outbreak at a Catholic school.

The teen and his father allege that he’s being discriminated against because of religious beliefs. Some Catholics worry about vaccines derived from cell lines associated with abortion.

The Northern Kentucky Health Department argued the ban “was an appropriate and necessary response to prevent further spread of this contagious illness.”

Chickenpox has not gone away since the vaccine was introduced in the United States in 1995, but each year, more than 3.5 million cases are prevented by the chickenpox vaccination, the CDC said.

Initially, only one dose of the vaccine was recommended for children. But when experts realized that a small percentage of children didn’t mount robust immunity after the first dose, the recommendations were changed. Two doses are currently recommended: one at 1 year of age and a second around 4. The two-dose vaccination program has resulted in a smaller number of outbreaks, according to the CDC.